In the best tradition of Calvin and Hobbes alter ego Tracer Bullet or Who Framed Roger Rabbit?, the story takes film noir or detective-fiction conventions as its starting point, but doesn’t take them too seriously (though the story does seem to evince the author’s genuine love of the genre—as well as of science, and dinosaurs). The story follows hard-boiled detective Braeburn and his assistant, Devereux, as they first meet with a seemingly mad scientist with theories about dinosaurs, then (surprise-middle spoiler alert) have to solve a real murder—before the killer comes for them. Except the whole thing is told in screwball banter.

The characters are perhaps both more and less than merely two-dimensional: On the one hand, a character like Devereux deliberately doesn’t fit (all) the expectations of a stock character or stereotype, but on the other hand, it’s not clear that the chosen combination of stock and incongruous elements adds up to a coherently developed character, or that it’s intended to. The story, while engaging, may just not take itself that seriously.

Like a Dave Barry column or a Looney Tunes cartoon, Fleming takes almost everything any of his characters says or does as an opportunity to add the incongruity or twist of humor, even when the characters are giving advice about humor:

“TV gets our job all wrong,” Devereux added. “For instance, when we come upon a murder scene, we don’t just say a quip and walk off. I mean, we often say a quip…but then we have to stick around and process the scene. And if your quip goes over poorly, that can be really awkward.”

“Stick to puns,” Braeburn advised. “Like when that body was missing a hand, and I said, ‘I guess he lent someone a hand…and the question is who.’ But stay away from political humor—that can be divisive.”

Happily, Fleming eschews his own advice, sprinkling references to political and other controversies throughout the story. It’s not clear that he has an agenda or is trying to make a particular point one way or the other about, say, Creationism; rather, he just doesn’t seem to consider any of these “divisive” issues to be off limits or especially inappropriate for polite company.

By the same token, it’s also fitting that Liberty Island’s first published full-length novel will be by Fleming. Superego, set to come out this November, is billed as “a sci-fi technothriller that combines both action and romance” (maybe even one that takes itself seriously).

It’s affordable—prices start at $5 for an e-book, $15 if you prefer an actual book (“Because we all have friends who prefer reading on dead trees (including some on the LI team!)”)—and it’s a way for you to make a real difference: Liberty Island is still in its struggling initial stages, and with 16 days left on this crowdfunding campaign, has raised only $65 toward its $2,500 goal. If Liberty Island does well in the years to come, not only will you have the equivalent of a “first edition” of a famous novel; you’ll also have helped change the face of popular culture.

Thanks! Glad you enjoyed the story. I should have more short stories up at Liberty Island soon, and I think an excerpt from Superego will be available soon as well (I believe the plan now is the novel will be out in November). While Superego does have a lot of humor in it, it is not a comedy like “Who Murdered the Dinosaurs?” Hope you enjoy it as well!